Leather-splitting machine.



PATENTED AUG. 4, 1908.

" a SHEETS-SHEEEE 1.

P. J. NASH. LEATHER SPLITTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION IILED MAY 6, 1904.

No. 894,850. PATENTED AUGK4, 1908.

,F. J. NASH.

LEATHER SPLITTING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED MAY 6, 1904.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3'.

U TE STATES rnnnnnion J. :NASH, for SOMERVILLE, MASSACHUSETTS, A'ssIGNoR TO UNITED snon MACHINERYCOMPANY, or PATERSON; NEW- JERSEY, A CORPORATION or NEW JER- SEY. t

No. 894,850 Specification of v EArnnn-srm'r'rmommmm.

Letters was. Patented Aug. 4, 190a.

. Application med Mayfi, 1904. Serial No. 206,792.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that LFRE ERIOK J. NASH, a citizen: of the United States, residing. at Somerville, in the county of Middle'sex and Commonwealth of Massachusetts, have invented ccrtain. Improvements in Leather- .Splitting Machines, of which the: following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like.

reference characters on the dra'wingsindi eating like parts in the several figures. j

This invention relates to .machines. for splitting and evening leather and has for. its 0 ject to provide an improved machine for this purpose. I The machine herein shown as'embodying the invention is particularly ada tedforopcrating on soles and other small pieces of I leatherpbut' it'is to be understood that many featuresof the invention are applicable also to machines adapted for splitting large pieces I of leather, such as whole sides.

The present machine is designed especially for evening soles,that is, reducing a numberof soles to the same thickness. .,It

is customary to'sort soles into various grades according to ap roximate thickness. computed in forty eig ths of aninch and toeven the soles in each grade by's litting from" the flesh side of each sole enoug stock to reduce y it to the exactthicknessof the; grade into which it has been placed. I Thefmachine of. the j present invention is, therefore, provided with a splitting knife and a pair of feed rolls, one of which rolls is held in ii id relation to the knife, at a distance above t e knife equal tothe desired thickness of-sole, while the otherfeed rollis yieldingly mounted to-enable it to adapt its position'to the thickness of stock being fed. The rolls force the stock against the knife-and the sole passes between the rigid roll and the knife while thesurplus I material split off-from the sole passes between, the yielding roll and the knife. ',The ngldfeed rollis adjustable to adapt the -.II18.-t

chine for eveningv different gradesv of soles,

and means-isj, rovidedpherein shown as a pointer moyab e overa graduated'plateflor indicating to thee eratorthe de ee of adjustment offtherolfor eachgradd of',sole.

rate their" grade and the machine of the pres ent inventionf is preferably providedwith; stamp ng mechanisinfor this purpose... The stamp ng inecha fism shown embodying.

' tive supports a plurality of dies, an one of which the desired mark to indicate the grade or thickness of soles being evened. As herein shown, the dies are carried by the normally stationary member," which, to this end... is inade inuthe form of a rotatable block with dies secured in or upon its periphery. Preferably the die-carrying member or.die car rier, as itmay be called, is arranged to be adjusted for putting the proper die into operaosition by means which is .o erated simul f-aneously with the meansfor a justing the rigid feed roll.- By this arran ement thestamping mechanism is always a justed so that it will mark the sole in accordance with the gradeforlwhich the evening mech anismis adjusted.

As I am advised ll am the first to-provide ting or evening s'to'c; and mechanism for marking the thickness of the stock produced, in coin ination with means independent of the stock. being fed for simultaneously ad justing the splitting and 'markingimechanmy invention.

, Preferably he die carrier will beso constructed and-arranged. that when it is adjusted for marking thinstock its acting face willbe broughtcloser to the reciprocating member than when it is adjusted for marking thick stock, in. order, that the stem ing mechanism may act uniformly on stock of different thicknesses.

These andother features of theinvention, including certain details; of construction and combinations. of parts, will be set forth in detail in ,the following description and pointed out in the claims. p I Figure 1 is ,afront elevation of the ma- 1 chine. 2 is .a left-hand view, the driving tions broken away. Fig. 3;is;a.parti al longitudinal section. Fig. I 4' is aiyertical ,transversesection. 5- is a plail V ew of the "knife andits ad'usting screws 6 is a frontelevationo the stamping die, the face "plug being removed. p

i eframe 1 5s constructed to rest upon a bench-and is provided with bearingsto sup- 7 pnit 'aldriving shaft 2 onieb; are mounted may be brought into position for stamping rocating member and a norma y stationary cooperating member. One of sand members A amachine comprisin mechanism forsplitisms, and th1s-;isone important feature of o pulleys being removed and certam other por fast and loose pulleys 4 and 6. Thedriving shaft isv provided with pinions 10 and 12 for driving thefeed rollst14 and 16. The pinion 10 meshes with an intermediate gear 18, which in turn drives a large gear fixed to Ithe shaft 22 of the upper feed roll, as shown in Fig. 2.

a large gear 24, which is fixed on the shaft26 of the lower feed roll, as shown in Fig. 4. By this means both the feed rolls 14 and 16 are driven positively so that the work is fed with certainty.

The machine frame has at either end upstanding posts which are forked, and the j shaft 26, carrying the lower feed roll 16, ex-

tends between the forks of these posts and has bearing in armsor hangers 30. The hangers are pivotallyconnected by pins 32 to lugs 34 projecting rearwardly from the bearings which support the driving shaft 2, all as which have bearing in lugs 52 of the frame turnin on the upper faces of the v The bar 72 is. arranged to and are ada ted to contact with the forward endsof the iangers 30.

The upper feed roll has bearing in blocks '60 which fit into the forks of the {posts 25. The blocks are channeled at their r .rear faces, as indicated by dotted lines in ont and Fig. 4, so as to embrace the forks of the osts and be guided by them. The forks o the post are recessed, as at 62 (see Fig. 2), to provide seats for springs 64 upon which rest lugs 66 formed on the front and rear, sides of the bearing blocks 60, whereby the blocks, and therefore the upper feed roll, are yieldingly pressed upward.

The position of the upper feed roll is ad justably determined by stops 7 O in the shape of wedges formed on the lower face of a bar 72, as shown most clearly in Fig. 3. The stops engage similarly sha ed lugs 74 formed earing blocks 60. be moved lon i tudinally between the bearingblocks 6O ant? a steel ca plate 78 which spans the space between t e posts 25 and is firmly bolted to said posts. The bar is moved by means of a screw bolt 76 mounted to rotate without longitudinal movement in a flange of the cap piece 78, said screw bolt having threaded engagement with a lug 80 on the bar. By the screw bolt in one direction or the other t e bar may be moved to the left or to the right for forrng the bearing blocks 60 and I ban The pinion 12 meshes directly with the upper feed roll 14 down or permitting said arts to be raised by the springs 64. A

d wheel 82 is secured to the screw bolt 76 for conveniently operating the sliding bar. The sliding bar may be adjusted vertically for the purpose of. positioning the upper feed roll by means of 'a set screw 88 mounted in the cap piece 78 and bearim on a plate 89' which rests upon the left-ham end of the sliding bar. By turning the set screw in one direction or the other the left-hand end of the sliding bar may be depressed or permitted to rise, under influence of the supporting springs 64, for putting the upperfeed roll into parallel or other desired relation to the cutting edge of the splitting knife to be described.

-The splitting kmfe 90 is supported on a shelf 92 preferably formed integral with the machine frame, as shown in Fig. 4. .The knife is provided in its rear edge with threaded holes to receive screw bolts 94 and the shelf is provided with upturned cars 96 which are forked to receive an untlnreadcd portion of the bolts 94 and to fit between. the flanges on thebolts so as to hold the bolts against longitudinal movement while permitting them to be turned for adjusting the knife toward and from the feed rolls. The knife is secured in position after having been adjusted by a plate 97 and bolts 98, the heads of the bolts being countersunk in the plate 97. The bolts pass through elongated slots 99' in the knife and through openings in the shelf 92, and are held in place by suitable nuts applied to their lower ends. The arrangement of the adjusting bolts 94 in the forked ears 96 is such that the late 97 hav ing been first taken off, the kni e may be removed from the machine without disturbing the position of the adjusting bolts 94 in the knife, and the knife may therefore be replaced in exactly its former position. This coin structionhas the advantage that it obviates the necessity for entirely readjusting the 'knife each time it is replaced in the machine.

It will be understood from the above description that the knife occupies a fixed pee sition, that the upper feed roll is adjustable up and down from and toward the plane in which. the knife is located to vary the thickness of the stock and that the lower feed roll is so supported that it may yielddownwardly toaccommodate irregularities or variations in the thickness of the stock. This arrangement will insure that the finished articles, such as soles, passing through the machine between the upper feed roll 14 and the knife will always be reduced to an even and uniform thickness with a given adjustment of the upper feed roll. The normal osition of thelower feedroll 16 may be a justed by means of the stop-screws 50 to provide for varying the amount of material removed from the lower side of the stock. By prope'rly adjusting the two feed rolls with relation 2 operating with the .120 is an adjustable 1 For to the knife the machine may be employed to split leather articles into two'pieces ofthe same or different thicknesses, as: desired. The knife may be, adjustedby-;the screw bolts 94 toward and from the vertical plane passing centrally through thefeed rolls, it bemg advantageous to have the edge ofthe knife nearer to this lane when splitting thin stock than when sp 'tting thick stock,-' as is 'well understood by those familiar with this art.

ness of worch will pass between the upper feed roll and the knife inany given-,ad-

justment of the upper feed roll, a pointer 100 "is pivotallyconnected at 103 to the. cappiece' 78 and has its lower end forked to engage a .block 102 pivoted on the slide'bar72. The;

upper .end of. the pointer is guided over a P ate 104 which is marked. toindicatethe. different thicknesses of solesusual in the trade.

The machine I for stamping articles to be:operated' upon with a figure or other marklindicating the thickness of the finished sole or other article; which the machine is'adjusted-to-produce. This mechanism comprises aneccentric110 mounted on the driving shaft. 2 and surrounded by an eccentric strap 112 having connection withtherearendof a lever114.

The lever is piyotedat 1.16 to the'ma'chine frame audits front=end=is jointed to a plunger.118.- The plunger receives'overgits .upper end the sleeve of a block 120-, which 'is sustained yieldingl'y on the plunger by means of a spring 122. The lower portion of the sleeve is'provided with slots toreceive the ends of a pin 124 in the plunger which prevents the block from "turning .on the lunger. and also limits the movement of the block longitudinally of the; plunger. C0 plunger .118 and block lock130, which serves as an anvil and in'the present machine is the die-carrying member of the stampingmech a'nism. Preferably, and. as herein shown;

this member is a rotatable block mounted on a fixed stud'or pin and into the periphery of which are set -a seriesof;dies 13 2 having characters embossed thereon for stamping the desired markson the stock. For the purpose of'adapting the stamping mechanism to operate uniformly upon pieces of stock differing in' thickness the dleecarrying block has an eccentric periphery. the dies-.- being arranged atdifierent distances from,

the point of support of' the block, those dies intended for stamping the thickest stock being located at points nearest the. pointof Y support of the block-and those dies intended for stamping thinner pieces of stock being located at greater distances from said point of support.

Connections are provided between the q pp dwith mechanism carr ing block 130, so'that the'feed roll and bloc shall be simultaneously adjusted to insure that the stamping mechanismshall -mark on the stock a thickness character corresponding to the thickness of stock for which the feed roll is adjusted. To this end the slide bar 72 has projecting forwardly from it a lug 140 which receives a screw 142 =1. having adjustable connection with a rack urpiose of-indicating the thick-' w bar144. The rack bar 144 engages a pinion formed on a shaft 146, which also carries a pinion 148 adapted-to mesh with a-pinion 1.50 fast on the hub .152 of the die-carrying block, see- Figs. 1 and 2. By means of these connections the die-carrying block is rotated to adjust it simultaneously withthe adjust ment of'the upper feed roll. The adjustable connection between the rack bar 144 and the lug on the sliding bar 72 permits the relation of the die-carrying block and the upper feed roll to be accurately determined in setting pendent adjustment of these parts, if that should be. desired. The die-carrying block has-in its front 'face an annular chamber whichreceivesa spiral spring 158. One end ofthe spring is secured at 160 to the hub of the block, while the other end of the spring :up the machine and also permits an inde )0- is'provided with ahook 164 which is adapted to engage with a pin 166carried by a re- -movable face plate 168 adapted to fit over the'front'of the die-carrying block and tol'be rigidly secured bymeans of a nut 170 to the stud on which' the die-carrying block is mounted. The face plate may be adjusted axially about the stud. tocause the pin 166 to hold the spring 158 under desired tension. The spring serves the function of holding the block yieldingly turned in a contra-clockwise direction as far as the (position of the rack barj144'wi1l permit, an thus revents any back-lash of the die-carrying case the rackbar 'or pinions do not fit snugly. The machine is rovided in front of the feed'roll's with a tab e 17 2 which is ada ted to support the stock as it is fed into t e machine, and the table has arod 174 arranged to act as a guide forthe work as it is presented tothe feed rolls. The table is pivotally connected to the'machine frame at 176 and ma be turnedinto the dotted line position sliown in Fig. 4 forall g ing ready access t'o'the feed rolls. i j

I Preferably, and as herein shown, the pin-- ions 10 and 12 and gears 18, 20, and 24 are, provided with double-inclined or herringlock in one teeth; This secures a powerful feed'of the work b the feed rolls 14 and '16 with a steady an even. progression, as distinguished from the step by-step feed produced when the feed rolls are driven by gears having straight teeth, especially after the gear havin acterindicating the thickness for which the as-used in t e specification and .feed rolls and knfie have been adjusted, and

then the stock is presented to the feed rolls which'force it against the knife and split from the lower or flesh side enou h material to re duce the sole or other article to the required thickness, the sole passing out of the machine between the knife and the upper feed roll, While the portion split off passes below the knife. The stampin mechanism is conveniently located at the left end of themachine so that the workman may with practically one movement present the stock to the stzltlmping mechanism and then to the feed r0 s.

' By the ex ression thickness of the stock particularly in the claims it will be understood that I mean the thickness of the'sole or other arti-' cle after it has been operated upon by the machine.

Having set forth the nature and ob'ects of my invention and having specifically described. a machine embodying the various features thereof in a preferred form, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States 1, In a machine of the class described, the combination with splitting means and an adjustable feed mechanism under control of the o erator for presenting varying thicknesses of stock thereto, of marking mechanism operatively connected with the feed mechanism to be set according to the adjustment of the latter, and means for automatically actuating the marking mechanism .to stamp thedstock in accordance with the adjustment use 2. In a machine of the class described, the

combination with splitting means and an ad justable feed mechanism under control of the operator for presenting varying thicknesses 0 stock thereto, of automatically operated mechanism for marking the stock in accordance with the adjustment used.

3. In a machine of the class described, the combination with splitting means and an adjustable feed mechanism under control of the operator for presenting varying thicknesses of stock thereto, of mechanism controlled by the adjustment of the feed mechanism for marking the stock in accordance withthe adjustment used.

4. In a machine of the class described, the

thickness of the stock combination with splitting means, a feed mechanism for presenting the stock thereto, and means for. adjusting the feed mechanism for varying the thickness of the stock, of a marking mechanism comprising a die-carrying memberconnected to be rotated by the movement of said adjusting means to cause the stock to be roperly marked in accordance with the adjustment used, and a reciprocating member for said die.

5. In a machine of the class described, the combination with splitting means, a feed mechanism for presenting the stock thereto, and means for ad'usting the feed mechanism for varying the t ickness of the stock, of a marking mechanism comprising a die-carrying member connected to be rotated by the movement of said adjusting means to cause the stock to be properly marked in accordance with the ad ustment used, means tending to turn said member oppositely to the force applied from the adjustmg means, and a 006 crating member for said die.

6. n a machine ofthe class described, the

- combination with a splitting knife, feed rolls for resenting the stock to the action of the kn' e, and means under control of the o erator for adjusting the feed rolls and the mite relatively for varyin the thickness of the stock, of automatically operated mechanism for marking the stock in accordance with the adjustment of the rolls and knife.

7. In a machine of the class described, a splitting knife, feed rolls forpresenting the stock to the knife, and marking mechanism, in combination with means independent of the stock being fed for adjusting the feed rolls and knife relatively for varying the produced and simultaneously adjusting the marking mechanism to cause it to mark the stock in accordance with the adjustment of the rolls and knife.

8. In a machine of the class described, a splitting knife, feed rolls for presenting the stock to the knife, and means, comprising a slide bar having cam faces, for adjusting one of the rolls relatively to the knife for varying the thickness of the stock, combined" with marking mechanism comprlsing a die-carrying member, a cooperatin member, and connections between said slide bar and said die-carrying I'nember whereby when the feed roll is adjusted for varying the thickness of the stock said die-carrying member will also be adjusted to cause the stock to be properly marked; I

9, Ina machine of the class described, the combination with a splitting knife, feed rolls {{orfpresenting the stock to the action of the and means under control of the opera' tor for adjusting the'feed rolls and knife relavtlvely to varythe thickness of the stock, of

mechanism for marking the stock controlled by th relative positions of said rolls and nife. v

" senate" I 5 l 0. -In a machineof classdescribed, a sphtting knife, feed rolls for fresentingthe stock to the action of the kn' e, mechanism for marking the stock, means independent of the stock being fed for adjusting the relative positions of the knife and .rolls for varying the thickness of the stock to. be split and also} adjustin said mechanism to mark properl the this means 'for indicating the thickness of stock for which the machine is adjusted.

1 1. In a machine of the class described, the

- combination with a splitting knife, feed rolls for resentingthe stock to the action of the kn e, and mechanism for marking the stock,

of a manually controlled adjusting device and Operative connections between said device and one of the feed rolls and'between said device and said marking mechanisrnfor positioning said feed roll relatively to the nife and adaptingthe marking mechanism to mark the Work with a character indicating j the thickness of stock for'which the roll an knife are adjusted. v

12. In a machine of the class described,'a

splitting knife, feed rolls for resenting the 1 stock to the knife, means for a justing one of the feed rolls with relation to the knife for varying the thickness of the stock, and mechanism for marking the stock, said mechan- 1SII1 comprising a rigidly supported member and a reciprocating member, and means for adjusting said rigidly supported member.

with relation to the reciprocating member to compensate for the ad ustment of the' feed roll with relation to the knife whereby the mechanism is adapted to act uniformly upon the different thicknesses of stock roduced.

v 13. In a machine of the class escribed, a splitting knife, feed rolls for presenting the stock to the knife and mechanism for mark-- ing the stock comprising. a reciprocating member and a rigidly sup orted member, in combination with means or simultaneously adjusting one of the feed rolls with relation a plurality of dies, in combination with means for simultaneously adjustingone of the feed rolls with relation to the knife and adjusting the die-carrying member to put the proper die into position to cooperate with the reciprocating member of the. mechanism for-marking the stock in accordance with the adjustment of the feed roll and knife.

15. In amachine ofthe class described, a

I splitting knife, fee'd rolls for presenting the stock to the knife, and mechanismfor marking the stock comprising a reciprocating ess of. the. stock, combined wit i memberand a rotatable membercarryi'ng a plurality of dies, in combination with means forsimultaneously adjusting one of the feed rolls with relation to'the-knife and rotating the die-carrying member to put the proper die into position to cooperate with the reciprocating member of the mechanism for marking. the. stock inaccordance with the adjustment of "the feed roll and knife, and yielding means tending to turn the die-carrying memher in one direction and prevent backlash when' said member is adjusted. v

16. In a machine of the class described, a

splitting mechanism comprising a splitting knife, feed rolls for presenting the stock to the knife, and a mechanism for marking the stock, in combination with means independent of the stock being fed for adjusting the feed rolls and the knife relatively for varying thethickness of stock and simultaneously adjusting the marking mechanism to adapt it for marking properly the thickness of stockwhich the splitting mechanism is adjusted to produce whereby stock of varying thickness. may be marked uniformly.

splitti mechanism comprising a knife and knife, and a marking mechanism comprising a reciprocatin member and a cooperatlng member','.one o which'is provided with a plurality of marking dies, in combination with means for relatively adjusting the knife and one of the feed'rolls for varying the thickness of'the stock and simultaneously adjusting 17. In a machine of the class described, a"

feed ro s for presenting the stock to the the said marking dies to put the desired die into operative position to adapt the marking mechanism for properly marking stock of the thickness to be produced, and means for moving said reciprocating member with relation to thecooperating member.

18. In a mach'neof the class desciibed, a

knife support, a knife provided with a screwthreaded aperture in its heel seated thereon,

an upwardly-turned forked'ear on said support adjacent to said aperture, a screw mounted for rotation without longitudinal move ment in said ear and adapte to engage said aperture for adjusting said knife on its support, and means for securing said knife in adjusted ositioil.

'- 19. n a machine of the class described, a-

knife support, a knife provided with a screwthreaded aperture its heel and an elon gated opening in its body portion, seated thereon, angu wardly-turned forked car on said supporta jacent to said aperture,-a screw 'mountedfor rotation without longitudinal movement in said ear and adapted to engage said aperture for adjusting said knife on its support, and a clamping bolt, extendingthrough said elongated opening and support for securingsaid knife in adjusted position. 20. In a machine. of the class described,

the combination with a rotatable die-carrying block and means for adjusting the same, I of stock,- and a marking mechanism connectof a spiral spring having one end secured to ed to be operated by said adjusting means to said block and its other endsecured to a mark the stock in accordance with the thiclv 15 fixed part, whereby said spring tends to turn ness for which the feed mechanism is set.

5 the die-carrying block constantly in one di- In testimony whereof I have signed my rection and prevents loose movement relaname to this specification in the presence of tive toIits adjustlilng mefanlsl. 1 d b d two subscribing witnesses.

21. na mac ineo t e cass escri e splitting means, afeed mechanism for pre FREDERICK LNASH -10 senting stock thereto, means independent of .Witnesses:

the stock being fed for adjusting said mech- ELIZABETH C. COUPE,

anism to accommodate varying thicknesses ARTHUR L. RUssELL. 

